News & Announcements

On November 22, we announced the last of our three rounds of Envision Awards for 2020. This is a time for all of us to be grateful that we can share the Envision Funds with groups in the larger community. The awards that have been approved by the Envision Board will go to three organizations.

■ The first award of $28,500 is to the Immigrant and Refugee Services: Self-Sufficiency Initiative which
is part of FIRN – Foreign Born Information and Referral Network – Language Connections Program. That long title includes the target group (immigrants and refugees) and their need for bridging language barriers. This project will develop a website for easier access to language services which assist non-English speakers with locating medical services, knowing what is available in the community, and help with legal document translation.

■ The second grant of $5,065 is to Supporting Native American LifeLines of Baltimore. Native American Lifelines provides health education, cultural programming, behavioral health care, dental services and more primarily to eligible American Indians in the greater Baltimore area. They traditionally host a holiday spon- sorship program to provide gifts to Native American youth. This year, due to the pandemic, they are strug- gling to find sponsors to support the program. The grant will help bring gifts for young people who may not have other bright spots during these difficult holidays.

■ The third grant of $10,000 goes to McKim Leadership Transition 2021. Many of you are familiar with
the 200 year old McKim Center in the Jonestown area of Baltimore. The Center is in a leadership transition period with the hiring of Mr. Garfield Thompson to replace Mr. Dwight Warren, who has been Executive Director for 30 years. They are seeking funds to provide education and training for Mr. Thompson so he can continue to expand the successful Track and Field program, and collaborate with the Baltimore Wisdom Project in raising funds for programs and operating costs. Other funding sources are helping with this effort as Mr. Thompson becomes the new Executive Director in 2021.

We give thanks to God once again for the opportunity to share our abundance with those around us, and look forward to the positive changes that these grants will help to nurture.